Spiked black dog bowl
From the cleverly-named Italian company Petaporter comes the "Easy Rider" dog bowl, black as pitch, with spiked perimeter. Italian for bowl is ciotola; that first syllable is pronounced like the "chee" in cheeta, you should forgive us for mentioning a cat on a dog blog. If you happen to read Italian, or just want to keep up-to-date on cool, offbeat doggy products, you could sign up for Petaporter's newsletter. The spiked black ciotola is available in two sizes, small and large. Petaporter says of this product "Ciotola aggressiva con borchie stile metallaro per un cucciolo dal cuore tenero." That means "Aggressive bowl with metal-rock style spikes for a puppy with a tender heart." Aw, shucks!
filed under Dining // permanent link to this entry
Decorative dog painting
Here is a Pop Art style depiction of a Dalmatian, to help your interior decorating go to the dogs. The background could be interpreted as halved, hard-boiled eggs floating in a sea of melted chocolate. Or, you could think that is just a yolk. Whatever the case, the Dalmatian's eyes match in color the center of the hard-boiled eggs in the background. Modern Dose, the company selling the portraits, says that each artwork is numbered and comes with an art identification label. The medium is colorful thermal digital artwork printed on thick, oxford-canvas fabric.
filed under For Owners // permanent link to this entry
Bling dog collar
All the way from Down Under, Hamish McBeth brings a spark to their doggie designs. McBeths' flashy "Bling" collar is the perfect item for any dog who loves to show off or proud fur parents who have a thing for hip-hop style. Though we're more into pop music, we're still smitten with this dark brown leather collar. Stamped to look like authentic crocodile, this piece of doggie fashion looks far more expensive than the price we paid (shhh, let's keep it our little secret). Like us, you'll be thrilled with the fancy flourishes, such as the Czech crystal "dollar" studs and silver accents. Look out JayZ--there's a new big dog in town!
filed under Fashion // permanent link to this entry
Dog-themed t-shirts
It's hard to live in the shadow of an adorable dog. All the stares and smiles are reserved for her majesty. Hey! Sometimes a girls wants a little attention. We're sure to get some looks with one of these sassy doggie tees. There are three to suit our many moods and numerous beloved breeds: Wiener Lover, Quiero Mucho (Chihuahua) and Holy Shi-Tzu. The ironic styling looks like a throw-back to the days of roller disco and the BeeGees. We can't wait to show up at out next puppy play date and see if we can rustle up some human attention and maybe a date.
filed under For Owners // permanent link to this entry
Peanut butter bones for dogs *
* This is a paid sponsored post.
Odds are, you either knew or were one of those kids; you know, the kind who stuck their entire finger into the peanut butter jar, scooped up a lovely creamy mass, and stuck the whole kit and kaboodle right in your mouth. If your pooch had fingers, we're willing to wager they'd do exactly the same... as it is, ours often try to stick their whole entire heads in the jar. (Ever tried to get peanut butter out of dog fur? Ew. We're just sayin'.) Luckily, there's a better way, with Barkin' Biscuit's bestselling all natural Peanut Butter Bones. They're made from the creamiest of organic peanut butters, but way, way easier to clean up after. Only the simplest and best quality ingredients make it into these bones - whole wheat flour, water, vegetable oil and organic peanut butter. Simple... but so yum. Best of all - to our way of thinking - is that the bones are available in TWO different sizes; one for tiny little Fifis and one for big-boned Fidos. We wish more companies would offer this! Smart, simple, delicious... now that's the way to a pooch's heart!
filed under Dining // permanent link to this entry
Luxury dog leash and collar set
The German word for fabulous is fabelhaft, which we tell you because we have found an absolutely fabelhaft deutsche doggy designer, Marianne Smith of Nobly Dog in Tirschenreuth, Germany. Everybody will be paying Achtung (that's the word for attention, by the by) to your Hund when she's sporting the green Dublin leash and collar set. The Swarovski crystals on these pieces are color coordinated, because we wouldn't have it any other way. We're partial to the German expression "Er ist bekannt wie ein bunter Hund," literally meaning "He's as well-known as a colorful dog" but is like saying "He's a household name."
filed under Fashion // permanent link to this entry
Dog toy storage chest
Artist Stephen Huneck lived through a very difficult period that led him to erect a Dog Chapel in the Green Mountains of Vermont. Many of his books and woodprints are based on one of his dogs, Sally the black Labrador. We just love the Huneck Dog Toy Chest on sale through Orvis. We also wanted to call your attention to The Cottage at Dog Mountain, which looks like a great weekend getaway spot for you and doggy. The storage piece features a hand-painted resin front panel and a hinged wooden lid. Perfect for Maltese, Pekingese, Dobermans and any living thing that barks.. Makes a dog want to go into the romper room and romp.
filed under Toys // permanent link to this entry
Book on commercial dog foods
There's more to most commercial pet foods than meets the eye, and a lot of it should not be going anywhere near your dog's mouth. The horrifying details are to be found in Ann N. Martin's book "Food Pets Die For; Shocking Facts About Pet Food." Chapter titles include "Sodium Pentabarbitol in Pet Food," "Animal Experimentation and Pet Food Companies" and "Mad Cow Disease and Companion Animals." If you want to ruin your dog's appetite before the lovely freshly-prepared filet mignon dinner you serve her tonight, read to her out loud from this book so she knows what underprivileged dogs are getting fed these days. We feel heartsick over it. And nauseated. And outraged. We closed our eyes when it seemed that a passage in this book described how commercial pet food companies intentionally include dried chicken poop in their products. This is a five yuck alert. Seriously!
filed under Books // permanent link to this entry
Flushable poop bags
Poop happens. The well-mannered dog owner is always prepared with a scoop and a disposal bag. But the sight of all those nasty plastic bags stuffed into garbage cans makes us cringe. We try to live as green as possible (save the earth for our fur babies) so we're always on the hunt for ideas that are gentler to Mother Nature. Flush Puppies fit the bill. These poop bags are 100% biodegradable. Since they are water-soluble they can be flushed down the toilet without harming the pipes. A simple pull of the the toilet trigger can go a long way towards eliminating waste from our landfills.
filed under Gadgets // permanent link to this entry
Doggie treat sampler *
* This is a paid sponsored post.
Here's the thing about doggie gifts; sometimes you just don't know what to give. While not all pups are quite as picky as Goldilocks, the reality is that pups have favorite tastes just like their owners do, and also tastes that just don't chomp the biscuit, if you know what we mean. Biscuit samplers are therefore a genius solution, and we're particularly excited about Barkin' Biscuit's generous 10oz doggie treat sampler. This box features a 2oz sample of the bakery's most popular flavors: peanut butter, carrot and molasses, parmesan, cinnamon apple and pumpkin paws. Several of these flavors even feature wheat-free goodness - a very helpful option for pooches with sensitive tummies. Best of all, these delicious samplers come in gorgeous, gift-quality boxes with a stylish bow, making them an absolutely perfect option for a hostess gift for a dog owner, a "welcome to the world" gift for a new puppy, a birthday present for that special pooch, or even a "get well soon" perk-me-up for a pooch that's had to deal with downtime due to illness. You can never have too many gift ideas!
filed under Dining // permanent link to this entry
Rock tour tote for dogs
We often long for the days of our youth. We remember those late nights when we sang our hearts out at concerts and called in sick the next day to work because we partied too hard. Alas we had to grow up a little to support our fur families. Just because we are responsible citizens doesn't mean we can't have a little fun. That's why we love displaying our cooler side with a Puprock Tour Tote. This chic carrier has kickin' details (Swarovski crystals and satin lining). Pick from more than a dozen artists--Gen Xer's like us will naturally favor Nirvana.
filed under Fashion // permanent link to this entry
Polar Pups frozen dog treats
We all know that in the dog days of summer, it can be nice to get the cold shoulder treatment. So why not see if your doggy likes Polar Pups, a frozen treat for canines created by Becky Marshall in Chicago? The frozen treats are soy-based and come in four flavors; banana, blueberry, apple and peanut butter. Tickled though we are by the concept of turning a hot dog into a cool dog, we do still love our pomegranate and dark chocolate chip ice-cream from the Sheer Bliss company. But chocolate is a doggy no-no, so while you're indulging in it, your tail-wagging friend can at least enjoy her little frozen treat. Polar Pups are sold mainly in the Chicago area but the producer will ship them to you for a pretty penny. Start polishing your pennies now!
filed under Dining // permanent link to this entry
Dog bookends
There are many reason we're fond of James Thurber. First, there's the prose and cartoons he contributed to The New Yorker. But second (and maybe more important) there's his lifelong love affair with dogs. Thurber's Dogs Bookends represent the doodle Thurber created that turned into a fan favorite. Here's how Thurber described his dog: “He loves serenity and heavy dinners, and wishes they would go on forever.” Thurber's scribble is now a quaint set of bookends bound to dress up any reading collection. Carefuuly commissioned, each of the two dogs includes a "book" (Men, Women & Dogs and The Beast in Me) affixed to the canine. So even though many of our books fall into the realm of doggie lit, we'll look erudite.
filed under For Owners // permanent link to this entry
Summery ocean-themed dog treats
We've cast our line and found something fishy for your dog. Cain & Able Collection is offering Treat!, a series of K-9 yum yums with a summery seaside theme. There's an undecorated fish and an apple and oats fish with decorative coating. There is a flip-flop with the foot's toe-nails painted pink, just like on certain Yorkies we know. Made from vegetarian ingredients, the describes the treats as "human consumable." But what importance would there be to a human liking the taste of a dog treat? After all, when our dogs are happy, we are happy, though there might be an exception or two to that rule. In any case, given these treats, were we dogs we'd definitely want to play Go Fish!
filed under Dining // permanent link to this entry
New Jet Blue fees for traveling dogs
Just when we thought our travel budget had been stretched to the max (ouch! those gas prices are killing us at the pump), we've learned that one of the reliable value airlines is jacking up the price to take Jack Russells, pugs, Chihuahuas and all other dogs along for the ride. Jet Blue is now charging $100 for dogs to fly (double from the old $50 rate). This news hit us hard. We already feel taken advantage of when we pony up $2 for a soda (no more freebies) and $15 for our luggage. These extra fees add up and may force us to swap our beach vacation for a week-off at home.
filed under News // permanent link to this entry
